Cosmas
by Fireblast123
Summary: It's Cosmos's birthday, and she's sending her warriors to get each other presents, Secret Santa style.
1. Names

Woo! I'm actually doing a short story for once!

Disclaimer: All characters, places, and everything belongs to Square Enix. Except this storyline and the concept of Cosmas. They're mine...Kinda.

* * *

Cosmos had summoned her warriors to her throne, for a reason that not even the Warrior of Light knew. All ten stood in front of the throne at which the Goddess of Harmony sat. The fighters all noticed that she seemed a bit more radiant and cheerful than usual, and they all were wondering what had her all worked up.

"Not to be rude," Tidus spoke. "but what's going on?"

Cosmos's smile just grew wider at the question. "I'm glad you have asked, Tidus." She then scanned her small crowd of champions. "For the next three days, we are holding a cease-fire with Chaos's legion."

Murmurs of confusion and surprise were heard for a while, until the Onion Knight said, "That's great and all, but why?"

"Because even the God of Discord doesn't want to fight on my birthday." A stunned silence washed over the group like a wave. Even the Warrior of Light, who was Cosmos's most trusted and loyal fighter, was shocked. "Today is for preparation, tomorrow is for celebration, and the day after is for relaxation. In fact, my previous warriors had even created a little game to play with each other during this time, and I want you all to do it also. For today and the better part of tomorrow, you will be finding a gift for a fellow comrade. You will pick a name out of this hat," she created a white Onion Knight helm out of thin air. "and will set out to find a gift that you think would be worthy for the person you have chosen. You will be free to wander the worlds in search of this gift, and once you find it, summon me so I can hide and wrap it. Just for a little surprise, you know. Then tomorrow evening, after a great feast that I shall prepare, I will hand out the anonymous gifts."

The warriors had various expressions on their faces. Some were excided about the holiday and presents, some were already planning about which gift could go to whom, and some were still pondering over the fact that a Goddess even _had_ a birthday.

The Warrior of Light was the first to speak up again. "As grateful as we are, Cosmos, why should it be _us _who receive gifts, and not you, as it _is_ your birthday?"

"What the-? Light! Dude, don't ruin it!" Tidus hissed. Bartz and Zidane instantly agreed with the Ace.

Cosmos gave a rare laugh. "Don't worry, my knight. Not only are you fighting for me in a grand war for hardly a reason and you deserve some sort of physical reward, but all of your devotion and strength are the greatest gifts I can ask for. Now," she waved the helm a bit in the air. "please line up and 'pick your poison,' as they say.

Probably by habit, the warriors lined up in the order they were summoned to this world. The Warrior of Light, being first, reached into the helm and pulled out a slip of paper. **Squall Leonheart.**

He walked off without a word as Firion pulled out a name. **Onion Knight.** The Weapon Master smirked, as he already knew what to get the kid.

The Onion Knight was next, and Cosmos had to lower her reach a bit for the youngest knight to reach into the helm. **Bartz Klauser. **The child reached under his helm and scratched his head. What to get the mime...?

Cecil was next. **Zidane Tribal.** He scratched his head as he walked off.

Bartz walked up to Cosmos with a confident smirk. The goddess smiled as the mime enthusiastically dunked his hand into the helmet and pulled out a slip of paper. **Cloud Strife.** His grin got impossibly wide at that point, and he walked off with a whoop of excitement.

Terra was up now. **Firion Rosenfield. **A relieved smile spread across her face. She knew what to get the man of many weapons.

Cloud reached into the helm, pulled out the paper, and stuffed it into his pocket without a second glance. **Warrior of Light.** Cloud was secretly seething. He just happened to pick the hardest man to figure out.

As soon as Squall read the name, he tried to drop it back into the helm. **Terra Branford.** Cosmos stopped him with a slightly annoyed glance, and the lion resigned with a sigh and walked off.

Zidane gave the goddess a wink as he pulled out a name. **Tidus Sandson.** The thief's heart sank a bit when he realised he didn't get Terra, but he was at least able to pick a gift for the second most fun guy there.

Last but not least, was Tidus. Cosmos handed him the last slip of paper with a smile. **Cecil Harvey.** He made a nervous chuckle at the name. He had no idea what to get the Paladin.

"Now," Cosmos stood up from her throne. "go, my warriors. And remember," she smiled, winked, and put a finger to her lips. "Only _you_ know who you're giving a gift to. It's a secret to everyone else. Good luck!"

* * *

Now, here's the thing. I want YOU, the readers, to choose what gifts should be gotten. I have some chosen already, but I am very easily swayed by other's opinions.

As a refresher:

WoL-Squall  
Firion-OK  
OK-Bartz  
Cecil-Zidane  
Bartz-Cloud  
Terra-Firion  
Cloud-WoL  
Squall-Terra  
Zidane-Tidus  
Tidus-Cecil

Note that I actually picked names out of a hat at random myself.

Now, tell me what you think everyone should get! The next chapter will be the warriors trying to find the presents, and the chapter after that will be the party. Thanks for reading!


	2. Gift Getting

**I**

Zell rubbed his face-tattoo absent-mindedly. What is taking Irvine so long? He drove them both to Deling for...Something or another. Zell forgot already. The sharpshooter told him to stay by his car while he went off to do whatever. Ever since this whole interdimentional war started, Irvine didn't like anything of his to be left unguarded.

"Excuse me, sir." Came a voice to Zell's left. He turned to see a man covered entirely in blue armor standing there, staring intently at the car. Normally, a sight like this was odd, but ever since the war started, the brawler had seen stranger things. Like rat-people. That was weird, the other day...

Zell snapped out of his thoughts when he realised that the armored man was talking to him. "Oh, uh, yeah?"

The Warrior of Light glanced at the strange contraption. "How much is this...vehicle?" He wasn't sure if Squall would like this or not, but he had no better ideas. Maybe he _should_ start being a bit more social...

The blond man processed what the knight said, blinked, then shook his head. "Nah, sorry. It isn't for sale."

The Warrior would not be deterred. "Ten-thousand Gil."

"I just said it wasn't-"

"Fifty-thousand."

"Look! This car isn't-"

"Two-hundred-thousand."

"For crying out-Wait. Two-hundred grand?!" Zell gawked at the man. That was a helluva lot of money. But this still wasn't his car... "...Sorry, man, but I _really_ can't sell this-"

"Eight-hundred-thousand is my final offer."

"Sold!" Zell cheered. The knight handed him a bag that looked ready to burst. He opened to bag to count and...Holy crap, there _was_ eight-hundred grand! He lifted his eyes up from the bag and held out his hand for a shake, but the man was gone. And the car.

Oh crap. The car was gone. "Yo, Zell!" Irvine called as he strolled up to the brawler. He glanced at the spot where his car used to be, then to the large bag in his friend's hands. His smirk instantly turned into a fierce scowl and he held his shotgun up to Zell's face. "You got thirty seconds to explain."

Zell cursed his impulsiveness for the _n_th time in his life.

**II**

Firion sighed as he watched the barkeeper walk into the storeroom for a new bottle of whatever drink he just ordered. He was really worn out from all this world-hopping. And he was only halfway done! So, he decided to take a break in a bar in Bartz's world. He recalled the mime talking about a drink called the 'Chocobo's Wrath.' Although, the weapon master couldn't remember if he said it was deadly or heavenly.

Meh, he'll find out soon enough.

A pair of hands suddenly slammed down on the spot next to him, and Firion jolted in surprise. He looked up to see a purple-haired man glaring daggers at him. Daggers coated in rum, that is. The man looked drunk off his rocker. "You!" He slurred.

"...Yes?"

"Ya ordered th' Wrath, right?!"

"...That I did."

"I challenge ye t' a drinkin' contest!" A chorus of cheers erupted from behind, and Firion noted that there was an entire army of pirates hanging about in the bar.

Rarely having a good experience with a pirate, the man stared down the challenger. "I'd rather not, thanks."

"Coward!" The pirate spat. Don't pirates have a more expanded vocabulary? "If ye won't be challengin' me t' a drinkin' game, I challenge ye to a duel!"

The barkeeper placed Firion's drink in front of him, seemingly unfazed by the pirates. Must be a regular thing here. The weapon master ignored the declaration of battle and sipped his drink. Hm, tastes a bit bitter, yet has a very nice mixture of alcohol and some sort of fruit.

Before he could even get a second sip, Firion was picked up and brutally thrown through a window and onto the city streets in front of the bar. The area quickly cleared out, and he stood up. He brushed off the dirt and glass as he saw the purple-haired pirate burst out of the bar's doors. "Nobody, and I mean _nobody _ignores the great pirate: Faris Scherwiz! Now, draw yer sword and prepare fer battle!"

Firion sighed as he drew his sword with one hand, and grabbed his spear with his other. Should've come here last...

**III**

The Onion Knight browsed through his collection of books. He was completely clueless on what to get Bartz. It had to be something simple, yet attention-grabbing. Fun, but not too showy. New, but not 'fresh out of the box' new.

"Aha!" He grabbed a short, yet thick book from the shelf. "This should so nicely."

**IV**

Cecil, after much reminiscing with his various friends across the world, had finally reached his kingdom of Baron. As much as he would have loved to visit his wife and newborn son, he was running out of time to find Zidane a gift for the party.

The paladin cursed himself as he covered his face with a traveller's cloak to hide his identity. He hated being late! And he _still_ couldn't think of anything to get the little monkey-thief! He knew the boy loved to flirt with women, but that got him nowhere. What else did the boy like...?

He turned his head at the sound of a loud shout. "The tavern..." Cecil mused. Although it was hardly a gift, this tavern was probably the fanciest one in all the worlds. And Tidus and Firion had made sure to check out every single one, and told the king of Baron that the one in his kingdom was probably the best one ever. Great service, amazing drinks, fantastic shows...The only problem was that it was incredibly expensive.

"I'll get Zidane a pass for three free nights here." Cecil thought aloud.

**V**

Cosmos had said to not tell anyone else who they were getting gifts for.

Bartz and Zidane thought that was no fun.

"You got _Cloud_? That sucks." Zidane laughed as the two friends strolled through some random street in some random city on some random world.

Bartz gave a hearty laugh at his friend's thoughts. "No, it's a wonderful opportunity!"

The thief quirked an eyebrow. "How so?"

"Do you remember when we were all sitting around one day and telling each other our most embarrassing moments?"

"Uhh...Yeah, I think so. Why?" A beat passed before Zidane remembered Cloud's story. "No _way._"

"_Way._" The mime ginned evilly and pointed to a nearby store. 'Ladies Apparel,' the sign above it read.

"You are _so_ lucky that we're anonymous for this thing."

"I'd do it even if we weren't!"

"You're crazy!" Zidane laughed.

"Crazy like a fox!"

**VI**

Terra wasn't sure how she should feel. On one hand, she had found the Wild Roses that she wanted to pick for Firion. On the other hand, they grew in a graveyard. She noted how many graves there was, just for this town. The half-Esper was instantly reminded of how many bodies she had to bury after Kefka achieved godhood.

She shook the depressing thoughts out of her head. As dreary as a cemetery is, the locals seemed to have made sure that the dead rested in a beautiful place.

As she plucked the Wild Roses for the boquet, she noticed that there were four large graves that seemed to have a bigger collection of flowers growing around them. _Minwu, Scott, Josef, Ricard _they read. Under each was a small quote from friends and family about each. Terra noted that three names appeared on all four graves. Guy, Maria, and, "Firion..." These were the friends that the weapon master had mentioned, but only in passing. They all gave their lives to help defeat the Emperor.

The half-Esper looked down at the small boquet she had made. "...Maybe he likes other flowers...I'll check the other worlds."

**VII**

Cloud walked out of the tailor's, his present for the Warrior of Light stuffed in the box he was carrying. He was about to summon the portal that led back to Cosmos's place when someone called, "Hey! Mr. Spiky-Hair!"

Why is it _always _the hair...? Cloud turned around to face...Nothing? He then looked down and saw what was calling him a second ago. Another Black Mage. This whole village was filled with them. He couldn't say for sure, but he had a gut feeling that every single one of them was staring at his hair.

He was about to ignore the kid, until he thought about what Tifa would do to him if she found out that he was being rude to an innocent child. He almost shuddered at the thought. "...Yes? Can I help you?"

The young Black Mage suddenly found great interest in his shoes. "U-um, well...D-do you happen t-to know Zidane?"

"Crazy teen with a monkey tail?"

"Yeah!" The kid lost all traces of shyness at the man's familiarity with his best friend.

"What about him?"

The Black Mage went back to contemplating his navel, after seeing the man's scary, almost glowing blue eyes.. "W-well he mentioned a f-few of his friends, an-and one of them he said had hair like a Chocobo."

Great. Pretty soon he'll be known across the worlds as Chocobo Head, Carrier of the Giant Sword. "I...guess that's me."

"Are...Are you gonna see him again soon?" The child slowly locked eyes again with the Mako Warrior.

"Tonight, yeah. Why?"

"Could you tell him that Vivi wants to see him soon? And the rest of his friends, too. We...We miss him. A lot."

It seems that even with the monkey-boy's irritating ways, he still has some pretty close friends...Cloud nodded. "Strife Delivery Service always brings the package, or info, on time. You can count on me."

**VIII**

Squall cautiously opened the door to his room in Balamb Garden. "Hey...Rinoa I'm ba-"

"Squall!"

All of the air was pushed out of his lungs as a mass of blue and black gave him the biggest hug he'd ever had. "Nice...to see you too...Rinoa..." He coughed.

After all of the Are you Okay's, How are You Feeling's, and Did You get Me any Souvenirs, Squall finally managed to explain his predicament. He had no clue about what to get Terra for the party, so he sought out his girlfriend's advice. "Flowers, chocolate, and diamonds." She suggested. "Best default gifts to give a girl."

"But, that just seems so..." The lion struggled to find a fitting word. "So...Lazy."

"Aww," Rinoa cooed and hugged her boyfriend again, but with much less force this time. "Squally cares about his friends so much." Squall didn't dignify that with a response. "Anywho, if you can't think of anything, you should ask her friends. They could probably give you some good ideas."

Squall pondered over this for a moment before nodding. "Seems reasonable." He stood up from the couch they were resting on and opened up a portal to Terra's world (a handy skill that Cosmos granted her warriors was the ability to warp to any world, as long as they concentrated). "I'll see you soon, Ri-"

"I'm coming with you."

"...What?"

"I've always wanted to travel to different worlds and universes!"

"...Since when?

"Since now! C'mon Squall, let's go to wherever we're going!"

Squall sighed, but smiled nonetheless. "More stubborn than a hungry Chocobo." He then led his girlfriend through the portal, and in seconds flat, they felt the intense heat of the desert wash over their bodies. The heat was a bit lessened by the fact that they were standing in the shade of an incredibly large castle.

"Dear Hyne, it's _hot!_" The sorceress panted. "Where are we, anyways?"

Squall searched his memories for the answer. Terra once introduced the rest of Cosmos's Warriors to her friends in this place. She said it was... "Figaro Castle." He answered. "We're likely to find at least one person here who knows Terra."

They proceeded to travel into the castle (the guards were oddly lax about who went into the palace) and Squall led Rinoa straight to the throne room. Inside, they saw two people. One was a blond man wearing a regal-blue wardrobe and was sitting in one of the two thrones, and the other was a sketchy-looking man with a bandanna wrapped around his head and he was standing next to the first man, leaning his back against the side of the throne. They both looked up at the couple as they walked in, and Squall really did not like the way that the man on the throne was looking at his girlfriend.

"May I help you?" The man in blue asked with a million-gil smile. His eyes finally turned to Squall, and they widened in half-recognition. "Hey, I know you! You're one of Terra's teammates. You're..." He snapped his fingers, trying to recall the lion's name. "You're...Um..." He continued to snap, and it was clearly irritating the man with the bandanna.

"He's Squall." The man offered.

"Yep!" Rinoa chirped. "And I'm his girlfriend, Rinoa!"

Squall sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Not only does she have to announce that to the entire population in their world, but in _other_ worlds as well? Great. "Yes, yes. And you two are...Sorry, I guess I forgot." He shrugged with indifference.

The man in blue apparently thought this was a great time to practice his introduction speech. But as he stood up and opened his mouth to speak, the man next to him beat him to the punch. "I'm Locke and he's Edgar."

Edgar visibly deflated at his missed chance and slumped down in his seat. "Now that introductions are over," he glared at Locke. "pray tell what bring you here to my lovely home?"

Squall scratched his head, unsure about how to phrase this. "Well...You see, Cosmos is holding a party and...and I was selected to give Terra a present...and I don't know what to, um, get her." He _hated_ talking to people he didn't know.

The king of Figaro was scowling ("Hive him a scar and brown hair, and he could be your twin!" Rinoa whispered), but Locke chuckled. "I know what you could get her. Well, something related to it anyways." Squall motioned for him to continue, so he did. "Not even all of our group knows this, but Terra just loves Moogles. We couldn't even keep Mog in the same battle party with her because she'd always get distracted."

"Oh!" Rinoa perked up. "Oh oh oh oh!"

"...Yes, Rinoa?"

"There's a doll shop in Balamb that sells the _cutest _plushies! Get her something from there!"

Squall gave Locke a questioning glance. "...You sure?"

"Positive! It's my job to know these things, y'know."

"You mean being a thief?" Edgar chuckled, knowing what would happen next.

"TREASURE HUNTER! Dear lord, why can _no one_ get it right?!"

After Locke had calmed down, the king invited the two other-worlders to dinner. Although Squall immediately declined, Rinoa persuaded him (damn puppy-eyes) to stay.

He should have just gotten Terra some flowers or something. Much less hassle.

**IX**

"Zidane, you sure about this?"

"When am I ever _not_ sure?"

"You know what I mean."

"Relax, Bartz. I won't get caught."

"Maybe you don't know what I mean. Do you really think Tidus'll be alright if he finds out you stole his gift from one of his friends?"

"Remember, we're anonymous. No one will ever know! Besides, it's a blitzball with a _saw blade_ in it! How awesome is _that?_"

"...Alright, but if he asks, I was just an innocent bystander."

"Of course. Same goes for me when Cloud opens your present."

"Heheh..."

**_THE NEXT MORNING..._**

"'Ey, Lu! You seen my blitzball anywhere?!"

"Which one?"

"The World Champion, ya! It's gone!"

"Wakka, stop shouting. You'll wake Vidina..."

"Bah, prolly the neighbor kids again, ya? They'll poke their eye out with that thing. It'd serve 'em right."

**X**

Tidus spent the whole of three minutes thinking about what to get Cecil. He felt a special...Something between them. They both had family members on the side of Chaos, and they both wanted to end this war and finally go back home with their loved ones.

So, with that in mind, he set off to Baron Castle. It took an hour to get an audience with the queen (and the negotiations involved required much shouting on his part), and by the time he was allowed in, his legs were killing him from sitting for so long.

The Ace tried to remember the correct way to bow, like Cecil taught him. When Queen Rosa noticed his odd fidgeting, she motioned for him to stop. "Please, you're one of Cecil's friends, correct? You don't need to be so formal with me."

"Whew! Good, I'm not one for formalities and stuff. Anyways," Tidus shook his head, trying to get his thoughts in order. "how would you like to see Cecil again?"

"...Very much so. I know he's fighting for all of our worlds, but I still miss him."

"Of course." Tidus nodded in understanding. "Now, what would you say if I told you that I could take you to him? For an entire day!"

Rosa was shocked, to say the least. "That...would be wonderful. But, how-"

"Leave that to Cosmos. Heck, you could even bring your kid along." The Ace was beyond grinning at this point. "And don't worry about your kingdom, I'm sure it won't go under with you gone for a day. And if Cosmos does some harmony magic mumbo-jumbo. Point is, nothing will happen."

The queen was secretly bursting with happiness, but she remained composed on the outside. "I...I appreciate this, but I have to ask...Why?"

"...Oh yeah, I guess I kinda skipped that part, huh?" So Tidus told Rosa about how he was chosen to get Cecil a gift for the party, and he chose the paladin's wife and son as that gift. "Soooo...Whaddya say?"

"...I'll go inform the chancellor that I shall be taking the baby for a short vacation."

"Great!" And people thought the blitzer was insensitive.

* * *

...WHEW. Some long, some short. Some funny, some deep. And one normal one that most people probably skipped by accident. DERP. But, needless to say, this was fun. I enjoyed seeing how the different fighters would react in different situations.

Also, I apologise if any character seems...Off. I haven't played FF I-V yet (I plan on it though! and I used the FF wiki), so I hope I portrayed the characters well enough.

Oh, if you couldn't tell, this story has no canon influence at all.

Thanks for reading!


	3. Gift Giving

Cosmos smiled as the last of her warriors gathered around her throne. "Before we begin," she said. "I'd like to introduce three people. They're all champions from previous wars, and I invited them for today's festivities." The goddess snapped her fingers, and three figures appeared in a bright flash of light.

"First is a face you should all know, as I've beaten you all to the ground like dough! Ohohoho!" Laughed the small woman. All of the current warriors cringed at the memory of Shantotto, their training instructor.

Next was a man dressed like a fancy pirate. "What kind of party doesn't invite the leading man? I'm Bathier. And you," he threw a pointed glare at Tidus. "look too much like a certain boy whom shall not be named. Stay away from me." The Ace had no idea how to respond to that.

The third person, a tall woman with pink hair, just said, "Lightning." Bartz and Zidane looked at her, then Cloud, then her, then Squall, then her again, then at each other, then shrugged in confusion.

"Now," Cosmos caught everyones attention. "present time!" The Warriors of Cosmos were still unused to seeing their goddess so happy. "First shall be...Squall!"

The lion unwillingly stepped forward as Cosmos snapped her fingers. Suddenly, a very nice car was in front of him. A very nice, very _familiar_ car. Squall grinned, already plotting on how to put this baby for ransom. Poor, poor Irvine.

"Onion Knight, your turn." The youngest fighter stepped up, and a large box was suddenly in his hands.

He opened it to find maps. Nine maps to be exact. "Oh _wow_! A detailed map of every one of our worlds! I've been trying to get these for a while!"

Cosmos called Bartz up next, and he found himself with a book. 'The Book of Incredible Information' it read. Curious, he opened it, and he found himself glued to the pages of uncommon knowledge and facts. Who knew that Chocobos were named that because the first one discovered smelled like chocolate...?

Zidane was next, and he was handed a slip of paper. He seemed a bit frustrated at first, until he read what was on the paper. "Holy crap! Three entirely free days at the tavern in Baron! Woo!" Firion and Tidus were secretly envious of the boy. That place was _expensive_!

The thief nudged the mime away from his book so they could both witness Cloud's reaction to his gift.

It was a box. No markings, words, or pictures adorned it. Cloud lightly shook it, then took a small peek inside. His face instantly flushed a deep crimson and he shut the box hastily._'This was probably ment for me to give to Tifa.' _He thought quickly. Although, judging by Bartz and Zidane's hysterical laughter, it was likely a prank. He ignored his comrade's inquiries about his gift. He's not going to tell anyone about this. EVER.

Then came Firion. He was handed an incredibly large bouquet of flowers. In the center was a multitude of Wild Roses, while various rare flowers from other worlds surrounded them. Call him as many unmanly things as you want, Firion loved flowers and this display of kindness almost brought a tear to his eye.

The Warrior of Light was next, and Cosmos handed him a small box. He opened it without hesitation and pulled out an incredibly intricate silver cape. On the back was a silhouette of the goddess, and the tag read 'By BM# 91, AKA: Amano.'

Terra stepped up next, and what she was given made her squeal in delight. It was a stuffed Moogle doll, and an incredibly cute one at that. She hugged it tight, as if it would dissapear if she let go.

Tidus walked up to Cosmos, and was carefully handed a large blitzball that had a buzz saw in it. "...Isn't this Wakka's?" He asked no one in particular. Zidane stopped breathing, hoping he wouldn't get mad or something. "Hah! This is awesome! Serves him right for hogging it all this time."

Whew!

"And last but not least," she motioned for the paladin to step up. "Cecil Harvey." The goddess stepped to the side so Cecil could see his gift...And so his gift could see him.

"...Rosa? Ceodore?"

"Hello, Cecil. It's been a while."

The couple gentelly embraced each other, making sure not to harm the baby. "Rosa...You...I'm...Whoever did this is probably the kindest person on all the planets." (Meanwhile, Tidus was shoving Zidane out of the way so he could read Bartz's book over the mime's shoulder.)

The following silence was greatly comforting...Until a gunshot rang through the air. "Well, I don't know about all you people," Balthier said as he rested his gun on his shoulder. "but all this touchy stuff is making me famished. How about some food, Cosmos?"

The Warrior of Light looked absolutely appalled at the sky pirate's behavior, but the goddess just smiled. "You're right. I'm sure you're all hungry." She waved her hand, and a very large table with tons and tons of food on it suddenly appeared. "Let's enjoy the festivities!"

* * *

...After the last chapter, this one just seems like crap. Ah well, we have the part next chapter!

Thanks for reading!


	4. Feast

Sorry this took so long. I got a bunch of new games so yeah...

* * *

The selection of food on the table was astounding. From roasted Gold Chocobo to Flan Flambé to some sort of strange meat that Balthier warned, "It tastes good for the first five or so seconds. Then you'll be wishing this was a case of magical poison so you can Esuna yourself."

That didn't stop Bartz from eating it though. And to the sky pirate's surprise, nothing bad happened to the adventurer. "It's not half bad." He said before he stuffed another piece of meat in his mouth. Balthier still made an effort to avoid the mystery meat.

At a different part of the table, as Squall was coversing with Lightning about their gunblades (even during peace-time, it's all serious business for Squall), Zidane quickly mixed in a bit of vodka into his friend's wine. The thief figured that the alcohol should loosen up Squall a bit. _He's too serious_, thought Zidane._ He needs to have some fun!_

Cecil glanced over at his wife, who was holding his son in her hands. _How can she converse so easily with a goddess? It's like they're old friends! Well, it's not like we haven't experienced weirder things...but still, it took me a while to get over the shock of fighting for a goddess._

"Women can talk to each other for hours about nothing." Firion remarked from next to the paladin after seeing his confused face. "Be they soldier, healer, goddess, or otherwise." He pointed across the table. Terra was effortlessly switching from a discussion with the Onion Knight about his new maps, and talking about her friends with Cosmos and Rosa.

"...I will never understand them."

"No man ever will."

At the other side of the table, Tidus and Cloud were about ready to maul Shantotto. "Sit up straight, or would you rather have an icy fate? Stop stuffing your mouth like a squirrel, you'll be likely to hurl!"

As the two swordsmen were about to tear apart the Tarutaru as she berated them for their choice in food, the Warrior of Light stood up and cleared his throat. He spoke as soon as he was sure he had everyone's attention. "First off, I'd like to thank you, Cosmos, for giving us this break away from war and for this magnificent feast." A round of applause sounded as the goddess modestly assured that it was no trouble at all. "Next," he began again. "and I'm sure I speak for all of us when I say this, I'd like to thank the people who got us all our gifts. Although they will probably remain anonymous, we all appreciate what we have gotten." More applause. "And finally," he raised his wine glass. "I'd like to make a toast. To our victories in the war thus far!"

"To our friends and family!" Cecil added as he too raised his glass.

"To our worlds!" Tidus cheered.

"To the light!" Bartz called.

"To Cosmos!" Shantotto shouted.

"To Cosmos!" The rest cheered and clinked glasses.

The goddess almost cried, she felt so happy. She had a feeling-No, not a feeling. She _knew_ that these warriors would be the ones to finally break the endless cycle of conflict between Harmony and Discord. She knew, because she could feel it in them.

The Warrior of Light's loyalty.

Firion's determination.

The Onion Knight's wisdom.

Cecil's hope.

Bartz's courage.

Terra's love.

Cloud's inner strength.

Squall's will.

Zidane's impulsive helpfulness.

Tidus' contagious cheer.

These traits of theirs will finally put an end to the endless war. But for now, it's peace-time.

_Enjoy it, my heroes. You all deserve every minute of peace._

.

..

...

..

.

"Garland! Garland, where the-There you are!"

"...What do you want, Kuja?"

"It's horrible! It's tragic! It's-"

"A waste of my time if you don't get to the point."

"Kefka found Jecht's stash of rum, Exdeath and the Cloud of Darkness are flinging things into the Void out of boredom, Golbez is missing, Mateus is failing to keep things in order, and Ultimecia got this strange idea that Sephiroth is a woman in disguise so she's chasing him throughout the Chaos Shrine."

"...And _this_ is why crazed Warriors of Chaos should never be allowed to roam free through a cease-fire. I'll be right there, let me grab my sword..."

* * *

Short, but I think it wrapped up pretty well.

And you didn't think I forgot the villains, did you?

Thanks for reading!


End file.
